CHERISH with HARISH

A recent visit to Haji Ali, Mumbai  Though the surrounding were untidy and dirty, but the 15th century Dargah was serene inside. More images clicked by me on my Flick photostream... My Flickr Photoctream

So, now there is a new phase. The moment I had finished my diploma film, I had started working in Delhi. It was nice to come back to Delhi (especially in the winters!). I seriously had no idea about the 'industry' in Delhi. There were many things I saw and learnt in these last 7 months of working in Delhi. Now, the problem is that I am getting bored of this city. And moreover, the kind of work I want to do happens in Mumbai. So, very recently I took this very important decision of SHIFTING to MUMBAI!  (As if there are people waiting for me in Mumbai to come and join their PROJECTS! Ha!) As I try to figure out things for Mumbai (I prefer 'Mumbai' over 'Bombay'. You see 'Mumbai' sounds very raw, pretty much like the city!) I am in the process of wrapping up my work in Delhi. I have been burning the midnight oil to finish the edit of this documentary which I am making for an NGO. I'll be very honest...It's a BORING topic! But  you know, Work is W...

In a recent trip to Mumbai, we came up with a random plan to watch Agneepath. Looking at the way Hrithik Roshan was throwing parties to celebrate the film's first week, I was quite excited for the film. Eros theater is this single-screened cinema hall in South Mumbai. Yes, SINGLE-SCREEN! There are many things I love about a single-screen movie hall, but what attracts me the most is the size of the screen, and a result, the size of the hall. You look at such halls and you realize why FILM is a BIG-screen medium. Eros Cinema, Mumbai Though there are multiplexes coming up with halls with better picture quality and Dolby sound, but when it comes to size, they are not even close to the single-screen halls. We took a balcony seat. From the balcony I could see the stalls down there and everyone seated in the hall. This is the second thing I love about huge single-screen halls. When you see so many people in the hall, you are glad that you're watching the film with so many pe...

कौन गहरा ज़्यादा? वो चमचमाता समुंदर, अंदर जिसके, बसते कई अनजाने से शहर? या वो तेज़ बहती नदी, गुणगान में जिसके जलते वो अनगिनत दिये, और गाये जाते वो असंख्य गान? कौन गहरा ज़्यादा? क्या वो खाई गहरी, भीतर जो छिपाय बैठी, पर्वत के सुंदर राज़? या वो ज्वालामुखी, जो दबाय बैठा है शतकों की आग, मन में अपने? कौन गहरा ज़्यादा? क्या ये आसमां ज़्यादा गहरा, जिसमे समा जाता, वो शीतल चंद्रमा उस खौलते सूरज संग? और वो तारे मानो सपने हो... टिमटिमाते, चमकते, छोटे...पर अनगिनत, सपने ही हो। या गहरा वो कुआँ, जो नानी के घर में, पीढ़ियों से शांत बैठा है, कई कहानियाँ छिपाय, राजाओं की, कहानियाँ गहराई की? कौन गहरा ज़्यादा? गहरी तो है उड़ान, उस कौवे की, जो न देखती कोई मुल्क, न कोई मजहब, देखती तो बस वो भूख, उड़ान भूख की। या शायद गहरी है मेरी नींद, अनजाने ख्वाबों में जो ले जाती किसी और लोक में, बंद आँखों से मुझे इतना कुछ दिखलाती, खुली आँखों से जो मैं सोच भी न पता। कौन गहरा ज़्यादा? गहरी है कहानियाँ, जिनके अंत दे जाते सीख? या गहरा है हर दिन, जिसके अंत में है,  अगले दिन के शु...

Up for more journeys, far and clean, lost in those clouds of dust and songs of the new breeze. Up for more routes, which entangle with no ends, and shine like those sweat beads, on my tired forehead. Up for more towns, which have stories hidden, under those old doormats, wrapped with the whispers of time. I am up for more, with limits as vast as the blue sky as deep as the far ocean, and as complex as you and me. Up for more...

There was a time when a news bulletin in the evening, on the radio was the most awaited thing for the day. I wasn't born, when such things were prevalent. But similar things continued... I remember, as a kid, whenever my  family would sit for dinner, we would watch the 9 o'clock news bulletin on Doordarshan. This was an unsaid rule, because there was just one TV channel and you had to go through the national news if you watch TV at 9. And to add to this, my parents were very particular to have dinner at 9, so that we could get to know what's happening in the country. This made news bulletins a part of our lives. Everyone had an idea of what's happening in the country and the society in general. Friends at school, relatives across towns had common topics to ponder upon. With time, there was cable television and this gave birth to many news channels. The problem with these channels was they were 24*7 news channels. So, they would keep giving us news stories for the wh...

I kept walking, as I saw and felt things, I kept walking, Looking at them, Seeing them, Being lost in those things, I kept walking. That wall of that bungalow next to the road, Which was waiting for a listener to listen to its story, Of how people admired the big house it protected, But no one noticed the job the wall was doing protecting the house. I wanted to stop, and talk to the wall, I wanted to listen to its sad story, But then, I had my own journey to finish, I kept walking. That weak stray dog looked at me with hope, His eyes had pain, hunger and tears. It wanted to tell me, that it was not food he wanted. What he wanted was love, just love. The tail wagged in a request. I wanted to stop and pat on his head. I wanted to sit down and smile at him. But then, I had my own journey to finish. You see, I kept walking. This big tree next to the road. It stood there with its huge trunk, With so many birds living on it, With that little cycle shop in its shade, With no one looki...